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TO THE 



itllfigats 0f ^($i16=<^"«y(*ftM 



ON THE SUBJECT OF THlS, 

PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION. 

riie time is rapidly approaching when you will have to perl'orm 
one of tlie most solenm duties of a free people. The election of 
a President of the United States, always a matter of deep con- 
cern, is swelled into more than ordinary importance, as well by 
the actual state of our own internal atfairs, as by our probable 
relations wdth the j!;reat powers of the world. The great repub- 
lican party of the Union, always relying upon the virtue and in- 
telligence" of the people, have thus far triumphed over all oppo- 
sition. By a wise and efficient policy, inspiring confidence at 
home and respect abroad, the fetleral party has been ett'ectually 
prostrated. But the fact cannot be disguised, that a new party 
has risen up, which tlireatens to produce the utmost distraction 
and confusion in the republican ranks, if not promptly arrested 
in its progress, by the unequivocal disapprobation of the great 
body of the people. In other states the people have taken the 
alarm. In almost every state in the Union, their voice has been 
unequivocally expressed against the Radical candidate. In eve- 
ry contest, his friends have been defeated in their elections, 
when they were known to be such. Virginia, the place of his 
birth, and Georgia, the place of his residence, are the only states 
which adhere to him, with the exception of the state of Delaware, 
which is noiv the only federal state in the Union. This fact con- 
clusively demonstrates the sympathy which subsists between the 
old and the new opponents of the republican party. But the 
election of a president derives an equal interest from the state 
of the world; and the part we may be called upon to act in its 



E^7 

C. 



^i 



<*> 



affairs. The brave and *fenerous (lefeudors of Spanish liberty 
have been overwlichneil by the power of the French nionarcliy, 
jnstijratet! and sustained by the Holy Alliance; and we see evi- 
dent indications of a design to resubjugate, by the same power, 
the independent states of South America. How far thisuidioly 
crusade may be extended, or what part it may be necessary for 
this republic to take, in the great conflict between despotism and 
freedom, less' than a year will probably determine. But it is a 
matter of the utmost importance, that in selecting a man to pre- 
side over our affairs, we should incjuire which of the candidates 
is best qualified to sustain the republican parly against domestic 
opposition, and the cause of our country against the possible 
machinations of foreign despots. In reference to these great ob- 
jects, r propose to discuss the relative pretensions of /o/oi C. 
Calhoun and JVUliam 11. Crawford; as it is now apparent that, 
in this state, the contest will ultimately be resolved into an issue 
between these twogen'tlenien. Tlie proposed discussion will in- 
volve a comparative view of their past history and services, and an 
inquiry into the evidence, furnished by these, of the purity of their 
republican principles, and their capacities for future usefulness. 

I pledge myself to state no fact, which is not either a matter of 
general concession and notoriety, or established by the published 
speeches and reports of the gentlemen in question. 

It will be recollected that the friends of Mr. Crawford, at the 
opening of the presidential canvass, believing that he and Mr. 
Adams had obtained the exclusive possession of the field, by a 
sort of prescriptive right, commenced their operations by hold- 
ing up Mr. Crawford as the unifonn and exclusive liepublican 
candidate. Either not looking into his true character, or sup- 
posing that time had thrown the mantle of oblivion over his po- 
litical frailties, they confidently expected to prostrate Mr. 
Adams by making him responsible not only for his own aberra- 
tions, but for the sins of his father. The ceaseless clamour kept 
up by all the organs that could be brought into requisition, about 
Mr. Crawford's uniform republicanism, very naturally excited a 
suspicion that it was designed to cover some latent and conscious 
frailty, in the party making it. The inquiry was made, and the 
suspicion realized. Mr. Crawford's own hand-writing rose up 
in iudsnient against him, and he stood convicted of haviiiij draft- 
cd and sanctioned an Address to President Adams, amidst the 
excitement produced by the most violent measures of his adminis- 
tration, expressing " the most tmlimikd confidence in the firm- 
ness, justice and wisdom of that ad7ninistration.^^ After various 
disingenuous artifices, (some of them evidently made with the 
advice, knowledge and approbation of Mr. Crawford,*) tending 
to throw a suspicion upon the genuineness of the Address, the 
author of the " Four Let Icra,^^ which appeared in the Richmond 
Knquirer, pleads guilty, and attempts to extenuate the offence 

. • Dr. Abbot's Letter. 



s 

lie atienipfs to resist tlie direct and conclusive evidence oi a re- 
cord, bj ex parte certificates ot'j^eneral character, rei'erriiig to 
the political opinions entertained by an obscure man a quartei- of 
a century a^o! But not to dispute about ivonla, what sort of a 
Republican was that m July, 1798, who had the most " vjilhititcd 
confidence'^ in the " wisdom and justice" of the alien and aedi- 
tion lawn? It has been shewn, from an Augusta paper of that 
day, that intellii;ence of those measures reached Mr. Crawford 
j)revious to the date of his Address. But the author of the "Four 
Lettera'^ contends tliat the confidence expressed in the Address 
liad reference only to the measures of preparation for a war 
against the French Republic. Considering tiiis writer's eminent 
])0wers at definition, (by which he clearly shews that one man 
cannot be an intriguer,) one cannot but be suipriscd at his no- 
tion of ' unluniled confidence in an adniinhtration.'' Accordins: 
to his reading, it means coniidence in a single measure only of 
that adminisdation! ! But even if this sophistry could be passed 
current for argument, it would be unavailing. It is notorious 
that the military preparations against the French Republic, con- 
tending as she was against a confederation of despots, contributed 
as much as any other measure toprostrate the federal party. 

But the Afto-iisla .Address is only the first link in the chain of 
Mr. Crawford's title to Federalism. The public journals and 
documents, which cannot be si/pprcssed, furnish a climax of 
proofs to substantiate it. These too will probably be resisted by 
certificates and definitions. 

One of the first acts of Mv. Crawford's political life; after his 
election to the Senate of the United States, was his' vole against 
the embargo; a measure recommended by Mr. Jefterson, to save 
our immense mercantile capital from the desolating sweep of the 
French' Decrees and British Orders in Council. The support of 
the administration in that measure, was then the touchstone of 
republicanism. This is apparent from the lact, that Mr. Craw- 
ford voted in a small minority, all violent Federalists, with 
Mr. Pickering at their head. Such is the company by 
which the good old^roverb requires us to judge of Mr. Craw- 
ford's principles inlSOr. V^'hat explanation do his friends give 
of this matter? One says it proves that Mr. Crawford (and of 
course Mr. Pickering) had more sagacity than Mr. Jefterson and 
the whole Republican party; anodier asserts, and proves it by 
Mr. Crawford's speech, that he opposed the repeal of the embar- 
go in 1809, when Mr. Jefterson and the party had determined to 
abandon it, and prepare for more decisive measures. 

Now those who condemn the embargo, as a permanent measure 
and a substitute for war, must admit that it was wise and neces- 
sary, when viewed as a temporary measure and preparatory for 
war. Of course it was expedient in its inception when Mr. 
Crawford voted against it, and unwise in its continuance wlien 
Mr. Crawford voted for it. What a tissue of disastrous contra- 



4 

dictions: Always changing, always wrong, -dmi always agalnsi 
the administration! But 1 hasten to another link in tlie chain. 
Before the close of Mr. Jefterson's administration, and after Mr. 
Randolph had seceded from the Republican party, it is notorious 
that Mr. Crawford attached himself to a junto headed by Mr. 
Randolph; a junto remarkable for puffing each other, and finding 
fault with the administration. At that time, if common fame 
speaks true, Mr. Randolph said Mr. Crawford ought to be Presi- 
dent of the United States; a fact which serves the double purpose 
of shewing the concurrence of their views, and the congeniality ot 
their principles; and of explaining why Mr. Crawford was more 
cautious and guarded in his hostility than Mr. Randolph. 

In the spirit of this hostile feeling towards the republican ad- 
ministration, we next find Mr. Crawford delivering a most point- 
ed and personal phillipic against Mr. Madison. The occasion of 
this phillipic was Mr. Madison's message, detailing the injuries 
inflicted on us by the edicts of Great Britain, and recommend- 
ing Congress to place the country in an "armour and attitude" 
suitable to the emergency. Mr. Crawford sneeringly charac- 
terized this message as having all the ambiguity of a response 
from the Delphic Oracle; and solemnly admonished the Senate 
against preparation for war, contending that the embargo ought 
to have been adhered to! At a later period v. hen the war be. 
came obviously inevitable, Mr. Crawford opposed the creation of 
a navy, pronouncing it " worse than ridiculous to think of de- 
fending our commerce by a navy," when every politician of sa- 
gacity must have been sensible of the folly and impotence of a 
declaration of war against Great Britain, without a navy to sus- 
tain it. When the question of war itself came directly before 
Congress, though Mr. Crawford finally voted for the measure, he 
gave it a cold, inefficient and equivocal support during the long 
und dubious contest in the Senate. At one period it was ascer- 
tained that there was a majority of two in that body opposed to 
the war, and to the very last the event was doubtful; yet Mr. 
Crawford never raised his voice in support of it. Soon after the 
var was declared, he took refuge from responsibility and danger 
in a foreign court, and there remained in undistinguished and un- 
profitable security, until the storm had subsided. 

But although he shrunk from the responsibility of sustaining 
the war, we find him soon after the return of peace, ambitiously 
aspiring, by the most censurable means, to that high office, which 
a grateful people had almost unanimously designated as the re- 
ward of the long services and recent self devotion of Mr. Mon- 
roe. As I view the attempt made in 1816 to force Mr. Craw- 
ford into the presidential chair by means of a Congressional caucus, 
to be one of the most alarming eftbrts at dictation which has oc- 
curred since the contest between Jeflerson and Burr, I invite 
your serious attention to a brief narrative of the prominent facts 
relating to it. 



I conficlently appeal to you, and to the people of every other 
republican state in the Union, not excepting Georgia, to bear me 
out in the assertion, that the voice of tlie Republican party was 
as decideilly and une(|uivocaIIy in favor of Mr. Monroe in 1816, 
as it was in favor of ^Ir. Jefferson in 1801. Mr. Crawford was 
not even lhntia;ht of as a. candidate, and his nomination would 
have overwhelmed them witli the surprise and astonishment of a 
levelation. With a perfect knowledge of the wishes of the peo- 
ple to the contrary, Mr. Crawford made this desperate effort to 
usurp the government; and it is worth remarking how precisely 
lie followed the usual artiaces of usurpers. Under some pretext, 
not now recollected, Dr. Bibb, the friend of Mr. Crawford, wrote 
a letter, which was published, stating that Mr. Crawford ' tlid not 
wish to be considered one of those from whom a choice was to 
be made.' Up(m the very face of it, this declaration is a modest 
invitation to his friends to persevere. But taken with the asso- 
ciated circumstances, we cannot resist the inference that there 
was a perfect understanding on the subject, and that this declara- 
tion was designe<l to promote the projected nomination. It was 
almost liteially Ceesar putting aside the crown, that it might be 
the more strenuously urged upon him. Immediately after 
the publication of Dr. Bibb's letter., Mr. Crawford's organ, the 
Washington City Gazette, declared that it was authorised to state 
that nothing in that letter was intended to con\ey the idea thai 
Mr. Crawford would not permit his name to be used, but that he 
would yield to the determination of his friends. From this time 
till the meeting of the caucus, every possible effort was used bj- 
the partizans of Mr. Crawford to effect his nomination. The 
Washington City Gazette teemed with incessant denunciations 
of Mr. Monroe, Mr. Jefferson, Mr. Madison and the Virginia 
dynasty; and the iame topics were urged by Mr. Crawford's 
congressional friends in the messes and in private circles. It 
was also urged tliat he would vacate all offices and fill them ivifk 
his supporters, thus attempting to purchase the government with 
its own patronage! During all these desperate efforts, neither 
Mr. Crawford nor any of his friends ever contradicted the above 
declaration of the Gazette, and it was perfectly understood by 
those who mingled in the scene, that he stimulated Ids friends, 
at least until he found his game desperate. To illustrate this 
dark transaction, I shall make a few quotations from some re 
marks made by the Editors of the National Intelligencei-, in the 
paper of the Bdi April, 1816. As these gentlemen are now the 
friends of Mr. Crawford, it is presumed their authority will not 
be questioned: 

" Our astonishment increases, by retrospection, at the formida- 
ble number of the republican meeting opposed to the nomination 
of Mr. Monroe. "SVe consult our inclination, and probably the 
interests of the great republican family, m avoiding an examina- 
tion of the circKmstances, a combination of which had neark 



produced a noniiuatioii in direct opposition to the public will'' — 
" It is a fact undisputed, we believe, that the activity and precon- 
cert of the opponents of Mr. Moyiroe, and a fastidious delicacy of 
Ins best friends, which prevented active exertions in support of 
his nomination, produced a state of thinj^s astonishing to most of 
the good people of the United States, who expected nothing less 
than that division of sentiment which prevailed among their re- 
presentatives. The decided friends of Mr. Monroe were so 
backward in their exertions, that at one time their opponents, 
mistaking silent conviction for apathy, looked forward to certain 
victory. On tlicir part, however, no exertions were spared. As 
no labor was too great, so no mccms were too humble to aid their 
object: witness the use made of the columns of an ephemeral 
print in this City, to soil the character and lacerate the feelin<'^ 
of their opponents." "It has been said that the meeting was 
got up by Mr. Monroe's friends under circumstances peculiarly 
favorable to their views. This is not true. On the contrarv, it 
was his opponents. Hushed with sanguine hopes of success— the 
re*iult of consultations previously held — it was they who urged 
the meeting — it was they who convoked it." " It is well known 
here that, had all the Republicans attended, his [Mr. Monroe's] 
raajority would have been more than doubled." 

Such is the character of this transaction, and yet it is to his 
conduct in relation to it, that Mr. Crawford's friends appeal for 
proof of his unaspiiing modesty. They assert that he could 
have been nominated, but prevented it himself. I do not know 
■which more clearly indicates the dangerous politician, the at- 
tempt to usurp the government by unprincipled combinations and 
direct appeals to the fears of incumbents and the venality of ex- 
pectants, and "in direct opposition to the public nill,'' or the art- 
ful disguise and' hypocritical duplicity with which the operations 
were conducted on the part of Mr. Crawford. "When week af- 
ter week his confidential partizans, holding daily consultations 
with him, continued to use all the "activity and preconcert" of 
men sustained and animated by a master spirit; when they un- 
dertook to promise that he would rewaid his supporters by ex- 
pelling all officers unfriendly to his election; when they " urged 
and convoked the meeting," can any man, at all versed in human 
aftairs, believe that Mr. Crawford was the unwilling instrument 
of all this distracting agitation in the Republican party? Can it 
be believed, that a man of whom the people had not dreamed as 
ft candidate for the presidency, and whose principal recommen- 
dation was that want of fixed principles which qualified him to 
be the instrument of a discontented and restless cabal? Can it 
be believed, that such a man was sustained upon such principles, 
and by such partizans, without his ap])robati(»n and concurrence? 
I pronounce it impossible. Thus we find that the uniform and 
consistent Republican, who sets himself up as the exclusive dis- 
ciple of the JetFerson school in 1823, attempted in 1816 to raise 



liimself to tlie piesklcncy, by denouncing Mr. Jefferson and all 
liis successors. 

But to complete the climax of proofs, which establish the hete- 
rodoxy of Mr. Crawford's political principles, I invite your at- 
tention to a few brief remarks upon his conduct as a member of 
Mr. Monroe's cabinet. It will be seen that the magnanimity and 
delicacy, which prevented Mr. Monroe from dismissing a politi- 
cal opponent, has been rewarded by faithlessness and duplicity; 
and that, instead of sustaining the administration, as he was 
bound to do by every principle that binds men together in rela- 
tions of confidence, he has secretly fostered and reared up, witii 
a view to his own aggrandizement, a party as rancorously oppo- 
sed to the administration of Mr. Monroe, as the federal ])arty 
ever was to the adminibtrations of Mr. Jel!erson or Mr. Madison. 
During the early stages of the opeiations of this party, when its 
leaders were sanguine of success, neither their hostility to the 
administration, nor their connexion with Mr. Crawford, was dis- 
guised. They openly assumed the badge of their association, 
took pride in the name u^ Radical, fiilsely accused the most eco- 
nohiical administ radon ive have ever had of ruinous extravagance, 
and held up Mr. Crawford as the great reformer of abuses. But 
when the people of the United States, too enlightened to mistake 
the hypocritical cant of noisy partizans for evidences of disin- 
terested patriotism, "frowned indignantly" upon this second at- 
tempt to elevate Mr. Ciawford to the presidential chair by means 
of the distraction of the Republican party, th.at gentleman, with 
)iis accustomed dexterit}^ attempts to disclaim all connexion 
M-ith the Radical party. Vain attempt! If that connexion con- 
stituted treason, it could be established before any court, by the 
strictest rules of judicial investigation. The evidence has gone 
abroad, and all the "multitudinous waves" of the ocean would 
not wash from Mr. Crawford's hands the stain u{ " Radicalism."''' 
I will state a few incontrovertible facts. Every Radical in the 
United States is the active, partizan of Mr. Crauford. There is 
no known exception. The Radicals in Congress, as a party, 
have invariably supported him. They organized themselves and 
appointed Speakers. A respectable member of Congress was in- 
\ited by one of Mr. Crawford's friends to join them; and it was 
stated, as an inducement, that there icas a party organized against 
the administration; that the administration was not popular, and 
jni'st go down. Mr. Gilmer, of Georgia, the personal and poli- 
tical friend of Mr. Crawford, in the course of a violent attack 
upon the administration, said it would ruin the country, and that 
he wished to sec the line drawn and parties designated. This de- 
claration furnishes the stronger evidence, when it is considered 
that Mr. Gilmer, though a man of mistaken views and violent 
prejudices, is highly honorable and candid. Char;;ed with the 
views and feelings of Mr. Crawford, he was too honest to conceal 
tkem. Dr. Floyd, of Virginia, a gentleman of the same charac- 



8 

ter, declared during the same debate, tiiat he regretted that the 
period vas so remote, that would terminate ilic administration 
of Mr. Monroe! The speeches of these two gentlemen, and the 
replies tliey elicited, were never published, doubtless for reasons 
satisfactory to the Editors of the Intelligencer. If the discus- 
sion had taken place before the collected body of the American 
people, a single doubt would not now exi^t, either as to the ex- 
istence, the principles, or the ultimate object of the Radical 
party. 

Thus have we traced Mr. Crawford through all the windings 
and sinuosities of an ambitious aspirant, recognizing no principle 
ot action but self-aggrandizement; never false to himself, and 
seldom true to his party; alternately profaning the name of Jef- 
ferson, by assailing and assuming it; but in every instance sacri- 
ficing the peace and harmony, the wishes and principles, of the 
Republican party to his own ambitious projects. Let us inquire 
for a moment, what services he has rendered either to his party 
or to his country, to counterbalance these manifold aberra- 
tions? In what single instance has he triumphantly withstood 
the shock of the many assaults made by the federal party? In 
what crisis of our political conflicts, has he evinced either a dis- 
interested devotion to the principles and measures of the Repub- 
lican party, or displayed more than ordinary talents in their vin- 
dication? These questions have been reiterated again and again, 
and his friends have answered them by referring to latent capa- 
cities and dispositions, the sudden development of which is to as- 
tonish the country; and which, like his cek-brated Address to Mr. 
Adams, will be " the more agreeable because unexpected." 

Citizens of North-Carolina! will you support him as an uni- 
form Republican, who has been more unif)rmly against us 
than with us? Will you support him as a statesman, who has 
not erected a single monument to his wisdom? Will you support 
him as a patriot, who has never evinced his devotion to his coun- 
try, but who fled from responsibility during the most trying cri- 
sis in the history of the Republican party, or of our common 
country? I am sure you will not: and it is with great pleasure 
I now '{/resent, for your consideration, the claims of a statesman, 
whose unexceptionable character, indisputable talents, and va- 
ried and distinguished services, will exhibit a striking contrast 
v.idi the corresponding deficiencies of the one whose claims I 
have been considering. I need scarcely tell you, that such are 
the characteristics of John C. Calhoux. From his earliest 
youthful conceptions, on political subjects, up to the present pe- 
riod, he has been an uniform and undeviating Republican. From 
a mother of Roman virtues, who had been often compelled to de- 
sert her home by the ravages of the Tories, he imbibed those no- 
ble sentiments of national devotion, which gave such a charm to 
his parliamentary eloquence; and from a father of sound and dis- 
criminating judgment, who served in the legislature of South Ca- 



I 



[ 



9 

rolina liming the whole period of the revolution, and after its 
termination till his death, he imbibed those early republi- 
can impressions wiiich have " grown with his jijrowth and streii,<i;h- 
ened with his strength." Having literally devoured most of the 
ancient historians at an extremely early age, and before he com- 
menced lus grammar-school studies, the impressions made by 
these parental lessons were swelled into an enthusiastic admira- 
tion of the great models of republican antiquity. Thus deeply 
grounded in his attachment to republican pnnci[)les, we find him 
raaintaining them under circumstances well calculated to illus- 
trate juvenile ardor and youthful firmness. After the death of 
his father, he was placed" at the Academy, and under the super- 
intending caie of his brother-in-law, the celebrated Dr. \Naddel: 
agentlemftn at that time not less decided in his federal principles, 
than he was distinguished for the graces of religion and the ac- 
complishments of a scholar. As this was at a time nut very 
lemote iVom the date of the Augusta Address, drawn up by ano- 
ther of the Dr.'s pupils, politics was the subject of free conversa- 
tion and discussion; and as John C. Calhoun discovered a very 
strong taste and inclination for political disquisitions, his brother- 
in-law very naturally, endeavored to reclaim him from what he 
conceived to be his juvenile errors. When I assert that the pii- 
pil openly avowed and firmly maintained his republican princi- 
ples, against both the arguments and the authority of his guardian 
and preceptor, 1 confidently appeal to that preceptor, and to the 
surviving associates of the pupil, for a confi.rniation of the asser- 
tion. 

From the Academy of Dr. Waddel, John C. Calhoun was 
transferred to Yale College in Connecticut. Here again he was 
destined to encounter his preceptor, the celebrated Dr. Dwight, 
in the field of political discussion. In the course of a recitation, 
the Doctor expressed a doubt whether the republican system was 
reallv better calculated to promote the happiness of the people 
than a limited monarchy. This gave rise to a warm and anima- 
ted debate between the Doctor and Mr. Calhoun, in which the 
latter evinced such depth of thought and power of argument, that 
the former predicted his future rise to the highest honors of the 
Republic. At the period of which I am speaking, the name of 
Republican was so odious in Yale College, as to be considered al- 
most an insuperable obstacle to the attainment of the honors of 
the institution. Yet Mr. Calhoun, with a few faithful associates, 
(who now live to testify to the truth of what I am saying,) boldly 
and fearlessly maintained the cause of republicanism, amid>t the 
proscribing Tntolerance of prejudices, which almost excluded 
them from society, Such were the trials, and such the unshaken 
republicanism of Mr. Calhoun, at a period of life earlier than 
that, at which we find Mr. Crawford yielding to the prevailing 
current of federalism, and expressing " the most unlimited con- 
fidence" in the administration of John Adams. Soon after Mr. 
Calhoun commenced the practice of the law, he was elected to 
the Legislature of South-Carolina, where he at once exhibited a 

B 



10 

jnatmity of ihoiiglit beyond liis years. Ills elevatinn ol tW.uac- 
ter -coinmaiuled confident. e, and his power (d" aiguinent seldom 
failed to produce convictiosi. Ai!iitn;.>; the lui-asures broii;iht be- 
fore t!)o Legislature duriiiji; ihc term of liis service, v.as a proposi- 
tion to remove the existing restriction upon the right of pojiular 
sutfrajie and make it general, with a ijualiRcation of residence 
only. Mr. Calhoun ably and successlully sustained the proposi- 
tion; contendins; that where a !ar<re mass of citizens is excluded 
from all power in the state, tliey will ultimately beomie discon- 
tented, and eitiier overthrow the government, or drive it to the 
adoption of tyrannical measures for its preservation. 

Such was the republicanism of Mr. Oa'liioun in 1808, and by a 
sinu;uiar coincidence of time, milking th.e contrast of principle 
more striking, Mr. Crawford the very saine year, in the Senate of 
the United States, voted fur restricting the right of suttVage iu 
the Mississippi Territory, according to tlie aristocratical notions 
of Virginia. 

After Mr. Calhoun had served two years in the Legislature of 
South-Carolina, the interesting and portentous character of our 
foreign relations, inducetl him to abandon a lucrative profession; 
and, in obedience to the almost unanimous call of his constitu- 
ents, lie took his seat in Congress at the session usually denomi- 
nated die war-session. 

During every stage of the discussions which preceded the de- 
cfaration of war against Great Britain, and during every stage 
and every vicissitu(!e of that eventful and trying conte.-.t, Mr. 
Calhoun took a leading and distinguishetl part in the debates of 
Congress. As chairman of the Committee of Foreign Relations, 
it became his peculiar duty to devise and sustain the various 
measures necessary for tie prosecution of the contest. A peru- 
sal of his various speeches, will result in convincing every im- 
partial reader that for Roman energy, lofty patriotism, profound 
political sagacity, and masculine eloquence, Mr. Calhoun has no 
superior in the present day. I have deliberately weighed every 
phrase of this euiogium, and I feel perfectly assured that it will 
be confirmed by the judgment of posterity. I invite your atten- 
tion to a brief review of some of his speeches, for a confirmation 
of the opinion I have expressed. And though disconnected 
quotations can give but a feeble notion of the impression made 
by the connected argunient, yet enough will be presented to 
communicate the spirit of the orator, and to justify the following 
complimentary remaiks and predictions of Mr. Ritchie, contain- 
ed in the Richmond Enquirer, of December rZ-i, 1811: — After 
characterising Mr. Randolph as "the snarling and petulant cri- 
tic, who laves and bites at every thing around lum; oblique in his 
})ositions; extravagant in liis facts; floundering and blunileiing in 
\is conclusions,-' he thus proceeds with the contrast: "Mr. Cal 
!\oun is clear and precise in his reasoning, marching directly to 
the object of his attack, and ftdling down the errors of his oppo- 
nent with the club of Hercules; not cloqui-nt in his tropes and 
figures, but like Fox iu the moral elevation of his sentiments: 



11 

iVee from personalities, yet full of (liose iiiio touches of indigna- 
tion, which are the severest cut to a man of feeliiij;;. His speecli, 
like a line drawing, abounds in lho>:e li<^hts and sliades which set 
ort'each other: the cause of his country is lobi-d in light, while 
her \)pponents are wrapped in darkness. It were a contracted 
wish tiiat Mr. Calluvan were a Virginian; though after the quota 
Mliioh she has furnishsd, with opjiosilion talents, such a w isli 
might be forgiven us. Yet we beg leave to participate, as Ame- 
ricans and friends of cur country, in thehonors of South-Caroli- 
na. We hail this young Carolinian, us one of Ihc master spirit.'i 
i/iaf s'amp their name vpon ihc age hi which they //t't," 

The-speech which elicited this encomium, (in unison with the 
goneral sentiment of the country,) was delivered in reply to Mr. 
jlandolpii, and in support of the Report of the Comiuiitee of 
Foreign Relations, recommending immediate preparations for 
war. I regret that I have not this speech before me, but its spirit 
pervades tiwise which succeeded it. In the debate on tiie propo- 
sition to lay an embargo for ninety days, as a measure prepara- 
tory fur war, Mr. Calhoun said: 

"Tiiere is no man, Hl his reason and uninfluenced by pai'tj- feeling's, but 
must acknowledg-o that a declanitiou of war on cm- part, ouglit almost in- 
v:iriably to be preceded by an einbarg-o." " We will not, I liope, \\ ait thi; 
expiration of the embai-g-o, to take our stand ag-ainst Erig-land — that stand 
vvliicU the best interests and the lienor of this nation have so loudly de- 
manded." " The gentleman from Virginia has told us much of tlie sig-ns 
of the times. I did hope that the ag-e of superstition was past. Sir, if we 
must examine the auspices, if we must inspeet the entrails of the times, I 
■would ])ronounce the omens good. It is from moral, not bmte or physical 
omens, that we ouglil to judg-e; and what more favorable could we desire, 
than that the nalio'n is at last roused from its letharg-y, and stands prepared 
to vindicate its interest and honor. On the contrary, a nation so sunkiu 
avarice, and corrupted by fiction, as to be insensible to the g-rcatest inju- 
ries, and lost to its independence, vvould be a spectacle more portentous 
than comets, earthquakes, eclipses, or the whole catiilog-ue of omens, which 
v,-e have heiu-d the g'entleman from Virginia enumerate. 1 assert, and geii- 
L'emeii hiovj it, if we submit to the pretensions of England, now openly 
avowed, the independence of this nation is lost,— we shall be, as to our 
commerce at least, recolonizcd. This is the second strug-gle for indepen- 
dence; and, if we do but justice to om-selves, it will be no less glonous and 
successful than the first. Let us but exert ourselves, and v.'e must meet 
with the prospering smile of heaven. Sir, I assert it with confidence, a 
war, just and necessary in its origin, wisely and vigorously carried on, and 
honorably terminated", would estaljhsh the union and prospeiit\- of our 
country for centuries." 

In conformity with the foregoing views, Mr. Callnmn, some- 
time subseipien''t, presented an able Report, detailing the injuries 
inflicted by Great Britain on our neutral rights, and asked leave 
to bring in a Bill declaring war against that nation. The inani- 
fold diiliculties, presented by tiie array of powerful talents in the 
opposition, and the hesitating, half-way policy of many Repub- 
licans, were finally overcomiTby the activity, energy and /A-al of 
Mr. Calhoun, and the able co-operation of many distinguished 
Republicans. 

After the war was declared, Mr. Calhoun, always deprecating 



12 

lialf-way measures, urged the repeal of the iiou-iniportation act. 
The speech delivered by him, on that occasion, so fully display;* 
the consistent Republican, and so clearly portrays, to use the 
language (not before quoted) of Mr. Ritchie's compliment, "one 
of the old sa2;es of the old Consress with the o-i^^ces of youth,'' 
that I must be excused for making a copious extract. It gives 
the most admirable exposition of the restrictive system ever 
published: 

" The restrictive sj'stem, as a mode of resistance, or as a means of ob- 
taining- redress, has never been a favorite one with me. I wish not to cen- 
sure the motives which dictated it, or attribute v.eakness to those ^\'ho first 
I'esorted to it for a i-estoration of oui- rig-hts. But, sir, I object to tlie re- 
strictive system — because it does not suit the genius of the people, or that 
of our government, or the g-eographical character of our countiy. AVe are 
a people essentially active. I may say we arc pre- eminently so. No passive 
.system can suit such a people: in action superior to all others; in patient en- 
durance inferior to many. Nor does it suit the genius of our government. 
Our government is founded on freedom, and hates coercion. To make the 
restrictive system effective, requires the most arbitrary laws. England, 
Avith the severest penal statutes, h.is not been able to exclude prohibited 
articles; and Napoleon, with all his power and vigilance, was obliged to 
resort to the most barbarous laws to enforce his con^nental system." 

After showing how the whole mercantile community must be- 
come corrupted, by the temptations and facilities for smuggling, 
and how the public opinion of the commercial community, (upon 
Avhich the system must depend for its enforcement,) becomes op- 
posed to it, and gives sanction to its violation, he proceeds: 

" But there are other objections to the system. It renders government 
odious. The fai-mer inquires, why he gets no more for his produce, and 
he is told it is owing to the embargo or connnercial restrictions. In tliis 
he sees onl)- the hand of his own government, and not the acts of violence 
and injustice, which this system is intended to counteract. His censures 
f\\ll on the government. This is an unhappy state of the public mind; and 
even, I might .say, in a g-overanicnt resting essentially on public opinion, a 
dangerous one. In war it is difterent. The privation, it is true, may be 
equal or g-reater, but the public mind, under the strong impulses of that 
state of things, becomes steeled against sufierings. The difference is al- 
most infinite, between the passive and active state of the mind. Tie down 
a hero, and he feels the puncture of a pin; throw him into battle, and he is 
almost insensible to vital gaslies. So in war. Impelled alternately by 
liope and fear; stimid.ated by revenge; depressed by shame, or elevated by 
victory, the people become in\inciblc. No privation can sliake their forti- 
tude; no calamity break their spirit. Even v hen equally succes.sful, the 
contrast between the two systems is striking-. Wax and restriction may leave 
the country equally exh.atisted, but tlie latter not oitly leaves 30U jjoor, btit, 
even when successful, dispirited, divided, discontented; with diminished 
patriotism, and the morals of a considerable portion of \ our people cor- 
rupted. Not so in war. In that state the common d:uigcr unites all, 
strengthens the bonds of society, and feeds the flame of pati-iotism. The 
national character mounts to energy. In exchange for the expenses and 
privations of war, yoti obtain military and naval skill, and a more perfect 
organization of such parts of yom- administration, as are connected with 
the science of national defence. Sir, are these advanUiges to be counted 
as tt-ifles, in the present state of the world' Can they be measured bj mo- 
nied valuation' — I would prefer a single victory o\er the enemy bj* sea or 
land, to all the good we shall ever derive from the contimiation of the non- 
importation act. 1 know not that a victory would produce an equal pres- 



13 

sure on the enemy, but 1 am certain of wliat is of grcalcr consequence, 
it would be accompiuiied by more salutary cfi'octs on ourselves. The 
inemoiy of Saratog-;i, Princeton and Eut^iw is immortal. It is there you 
will find the country's boast and pride; the inexhaustible source of great 
and heroic sentiments. But what will history say of restriction? What 
examples worthy of imitation ^ill it furnish posterity? Mhat pride, what 
pleasure will our children find in the events of such times? Let mc not be 
considered romantic. 

"This nation ovight to be taug"ht to rely on* its own courage, its forti- 
tude, its skill and virtue for jjrotection. These are the only safeguards 
in the hoiu* of dang-er. Man was endued with these gi'eat qualities 
for his defence. There is nothing about him that indicates that he is to 
conquer bv endurance. He is not incnisted in a shell; he is not taught to 
relv upon his insensibility, his passive suficring, for defence. No, sir: it is 
on the invincible mind, on a magnanimous nature he ought to rely. Here 
is the superiority of our kind; it is these that render man the Lord of the 
world. • It is the destin}' of his condition, that nations rise above nations, as 
they are endued in a greater degree with these brilliant qualities." 

Eloquence wortliy of DtMUOstliones! sentiments worthy of the 
best days of Greece and Rome! and political reflections that 
would do honor to the most expeiienced statesman! If the pic- 
ture had boon drawn after the war, he could not have described 
its benedcial effects with a nicer precision. How enviable is the 
light in which Mr. Calhoun is exhibited, when we compare these 
views with the vacillating, contradictory course of Mr. Craw- 
ford in relation to the embargo! 

In March, 1814, soon after the first dethronement of Buona- 
parte, to the eye of the timid, onr allairs assumed a gloomy and 
disheartening aspect. The whole power of our enemy. Hushed 
with success, was about to be poured in upon us. The opposi- 
tion, vigilant and powerful, seized upon the occasion to embari ass 
the government, and used every effort to defeat the Loan Bill; a 
measure essential to the finances of the country. They <lenoun- 
ced the war as unjust and inexpedient, and painted the hopeless- 
ness of the unequal contest in which we were engaged. 

Mr. Calhoun replied in a speech, which no American can read 
without having- his feelings raised to a pitch of " moral elevation," 
which it is the prerogative of wisdoui, eloquently spoken, only 
to excite. 

To show the expediency of the war, he took a historical view 
of the British maritime usurpations from the celebrated rule of 
J 756, up to the time of the discussion; and demonstrated that 
these aggressions were not accidental or temporai-y, but that 
they entered essentially into the system of the maritime policy 
of the enemy. From this luminous view of the origin, naturo 
and principle of the wrongs we suffered, he clearly showed both 
the flimsiness of the pretexts by which the enemy sought to jus- 
tify, and the opposition to excuse them; and the folly of expect- 
ing to obtain redress, by sheathing the sword and throwing our- 
selves upon the justice of the enemy. In concluding this view 
of his subject, he proceeded as follows: 

" This country was left alone to support the rights of neutrals. Perilous 
was the condition, and arduous the ta.sk. We were not intimidated. 
We stood opposed to British usui-pation, and by our spirit and efforts have 



14 

done all in cur power to save the last vcstig-os of neutral rig-lits. Yes, cur 
embargoes, non-intercourse, non-iniportatjon, and linally war, were all 
inanlv exertions to preserve the rights of tliis and other nations, from the 
deadi V grxsp of British maritime policy. But, say our opponents, these ef- 
forts are lost, and our concUtion hopeless. If so, it only reniains for us to 
assume the g-ai-b of our condition. AVc must submit, humbly sub- 
mit, crave pardon, and hug our chains. It is not wise to provoke, where 
we cannot resist. But hrst let us be well assured of the hopelessnesb of 
our state, before we sink into submission. On what do our opponent's rest 
tills despondent and slavish belief? On the recent events in Europe? I 
admit they are great, and well calculated to impose on the imagination. 
Our enemy never presented a more imposing exterior. His fortune is at 
the flood. But I am admonished, by univereal experience, that such pros- 
perity is the most precarious of human conditions. Trom the flood the 
tide dat es its ebb. From the meridian the sun commences his decline. De- 
pend upon it, there is more of sound philosophy than of fiction in the licklc- 
ness wliich poets attribute to fortune. Prosperity has its weaknese; adver- 
sity its sti-ength. In many respects our enemy has lost by those very 
changes which seem so very much in his favor. He can no more claim to 
be struggling for existence;" no more to be fighting the battles of the world, 
in defence of the liberties of mankind. The magic cry of French influence 
is lost. In this very liall we are not strangers to that sound. Here, 
even here, the cry of French influence, that baseless fiction, chat phantom 
of faction, now banished, often resounded. I rejoice that the spell is bro- 
ken, by which it was attempted to bind the spirit of this youthful nation. 
The niinority can no longer act under cover, but must come out and de- 
fend their o"pposition on its own intrinsic merits." — " Our example can 
scai-cely fail to produce its effects on otaer nations interested in the main- 
tenance of maritime rights. But if, unfortunately, wc should be left alone 
to maintain the contest; and if, wMch may God forbid, necessity should 
compel us to yield for the present, yet our generous efforts will not have 
been lost. A mode of thinking and a tone of sentiment have gone abroad, 
which must stimulate to future and more successful sti-uggles. A'ihat could 
not be effected with eight miUions of people, will be done with twenty. 
The great cause will never be yielded; no, never, never."— " Sir, 1 hear 
the future audibly announced in the past— in the splendid victories over 
the Gucrricre, JaVa, and .Macedonian. We, and all nations, arc, by these 
victories, taught a lesson never to be forgotten. Opinion is pov>er. The 
charm of British navalinvincibilittj is gone." 

Such were the animating strains by wliich Mr. Calhoun, near- 
ly ten years ago, roused liia country to action amidst a co!n].li(.a- 
tion of adverse circumstances, calVidated to overwht'lm the fee- 
ble and appal the stoutest. Never laltcring, never doubtiisg, ncver^ 
despairing of the llepublic, he was at once the '' stately colunm" 
of his party, and the beacon-light of his country. 

Sucli is an imperfect glance at the services, rendered by Jo1:m 
C. Calhoun to his parly and to his cou.tfri/, during the most peri- 
lous struggle which tli'at party and that country ever encounter- 
ed: while William II. Crawford, during the same peiiod, has 
left upon the records of his country " no memorial." Those who 
are familiar with the history of that crisis, tlsat "second war of 
independence," must recollect, that the downfall of the Repub- 
lican party was confidently anticipated by the Federalists, and 
seriously apprehended by many Rc|)ublicai'is. Tiiis will account 
ix)r Mr.'Crawford's cold and hesitating support of the war, and 
his speedy retreat from its rcsponsibiliiy and its dangers. ISlr. 
Calhoun, on the contrary, bclieyiug the cause of lus party to be 



15 

the cause of Ills country, disdained to indulge a hope of lisiii^r 
upon its niins. 

At the c!or,c of the war, such was the confidence reposed in 
the intcgiity and talents of Mr. Calhoun, ami sucli l:is practical 
ener^^y of chaiacter, that he had a principal agency in such legis- 
lative measures, as were necessary for the organization of a peace 
establishment. 

In fixing the number of the army, Mr. Madison was under- 
stood to be in favor of twenty thousand; anil Mi-. Clay contend- 
ed for at least fifteen tiiousand; and Mr. Calhoun insisted that it 
ought not to be higher than tt-n thousand; contending then, as he 
I'.as always done since, that the great point was not to have the 
establishment large, but permanent and well organized. Fre- 
Cjuent changes, he said, destroy the spirit and zeal of the officers, 
and the organization of tiie army; defeating llie very object of the 
establishment. With the same general views he zealously support- 
ed the Military Acailemy at West Point; an institution t/ien strug- 
gling against powerful prejudices, b\itnoic the general favorite of 
the nation. It is beyond question the cheapest and the safest mode 
of ditriisiiig military science through the country. 

Wlnle 5lr. Caliioun has always contended for maintaining our 
establishments for national defence, upon a scale commensurate 
with our resources, and adapted to our existing and probable re- 
lations with the great powers of the earth, he has as uniformly 
contended for strict economy in the public disbursenients, and 
exemplified his theory by his practice. 

He was the first to introduce a law depriving the executive of 
the power of transferring money from one head of appropriation 
to another, and make all appropriations specific. Tliis measure 
he supported by a speech, in wliich he ably enforced the neces- 
sity o\' iJiat strict accountability in public agents which, as Secre- 
tary of ^^'ar, he has since introduced with such signal at! vantage 
to the country. In this salutary work of reform, he was opposed 
by all the inlluence of William H. Crawford, then Secretary ot 
the Treasury. 

In 1816, a proposition to repeal the direct taxes, gave rise to 
a debate on the state of tlie llcpublic, involving a discussion of 
the policy of the country in nine of peace. The speech deliver- 
ed by Mr. Calhoun on that occasion, elicited a burst of approba- 
tion, and extorted from a member, not friendly to the orator, this 
involuntary exclamation: " what a prodigious effort of the human 
mind!" The Editors of the Intelligencer stated, in their notice 
of it, that Mr. Calhoun migiit safely rest " his fame as a states- 
man and orator" upon that single production. I regret tliat of 
this speech, as of that on the Loan Bill, I can only give a hw 
detached sentences. Taken together they contain a summary 
of all that can be said of the interests of the Republic, and the 
duties of the government in v, ur and in peace. After takin;: a 
profound view of our probable relations witli other powers, aiid 
the policy which we should pursue towards them, he proceeded 
to consider the measures of preparation necessary for our defence: 



16 

"The navy, sakl he, most cei-tiunly, in every j^ointof view, occupies llie 
first place. It is the most safe, most efiectuul, and the cheapest mode of 
defence. We have heard much of the diing-er of stxinding aniiies to our 
liberties; the objection cannot be made to a na\} . Generals, it must be ac- 
knowledged, have often advanced at the head of anuies to imperial rank 
and power; but in what instance had an Admiral usurped the hberties 
of his country?" 

"In regard to the militia, I would go as far as any man; and considerably 
farther than those would, who are so Violently opposed lo our small army. 
J know the danger of large standing armies; 1 know the militia are the true 
force; that no nation can be safe at home and abroad which has not an effi- 
cient mihtia." 

After indicating the various defensive preparations demanded 
by the true. and peimancnt interests ot the country, he enforces 
his views by the following eloquent and impressive peroration: 

The people, I believe, are intehigent and virtuous. The more wiselj', 
then, you act; the less you yield to the temptation of ignoble and false se- 
cm'ity, tlie more you will attract their confidence. Already they go far, 
very far before this House, in energy and public spint. If ever measures of 
this kind become unpopidar, it will be by speeches here. I do sincerely 
hope that the members of this House are the real agents of tlie people,- they 
are sent here not to consult their ease and convenience, but their general 
defence and common welfiu'e. Such is the language of the Constitution. 
In chschargc of the sacred trust reposed in me by those for whom I act, I 
have faithfully pointed out those measures, which our situation and relation 
to the rest of the ^\■orld, render necessary for our security and lastuig pros- 
perity. I know of no situation so responsible, if properly considered, as 
ours. We are charged by providence not only witli the happiness of this 
great and rising people, but, in a considerable degree, with that of the hu- 
man race. We have a government of a new ordci-, pciiectlj' chstinct from 
all which have preceded it. A government, founded on the rights of man; 
resting, not on authority, not on prejudice, not on superstition, but reason. 
If it shall succeed, as fondly hoped by its founders, it vv-ill be the com- 
mencement of a new era in himian affairs. All civihzed governments, 
must, in the course of time, coni'orm to its principles. Thus circumstanced, 
ean you hesitate what course to choose? The road tliat wisdom inchcates 
leads, it is true, up tiie steep, but leads also to security and lasting glory. 
No nation that wants the fortitude to tread it, ought evei- to aspire to great- 
jiess. Such ought to suik, and will sink, into the list of those that have 
done notiilng to be remembered. It is immutable; it is in the nature of 
things. The love of present ease and pleasure, indifference about tlie fu- 
ture, th.at fatal weakness of human natui-e, lias never failed, in individuals 
or nations, to sink to disgrace and ruin. On the contrary, virtue and wis- 
dom, wiiich regard the future, which spm-n tlie temptations of the moment, 
however rugged their path, end in happiness. Such are the univei-sal sen- 
timents of all wise writers, from tiie didactics of the philosopherto the fic- 
tions of the poet. They agree and inculcate tliat jdeasure is a flowery 
palii leading oil' among groves and gardens, but ending in a dreary wikler 
iicss — tjjatit is the Syi-en's voice wiiich, he v. ho listens to, is ruined — that 
it is the cup of Circe, of which, whosoever ch-inks, is converted into a swine. 
This is the language of fiction; reason teaches the same. It is my %i ish to ele- 
vate the national sentiment, to that which animates every just and % htuous 
mind. No effort is needed here to impel us the o})posite way. That may 
be too safely trusted to the fiaillits of our nature. This nation is now in 
a situation similar to that which one of the most beautiful writers of anti- 
quity ascribes to Hercules in his youth: He represents the hero as retiring 
into the wilderness, to deUberate on the course of life which he ought to 
choose. Two Goddesses approached him; one recommending to him a 
I'fc of ease and pleasure, the other of labor aiid > Ulue. The Hero adopted 



17 

(he counsel of tlic latter, and his fame and glory 'arc known to the world. 
Jlay tliis nation, tlic youtliful Hercules, possessing- his form and muscles, 
be animated by simihu* sentiments and follow his example!" 

I shall conclude this i-apiil glance at Mr. Callidun'a congres- 
sional services, by quoting one oi'iiis views on the great (juestiou 
of Internal Improvement, as containetl in the speech he deliver- 
ed in support of liis well known plan on that subject: 

'■ But when we conic to consider (said he) how inliniatjly the strength 
and prosperity of the Republic lU'c connected w it;li this subject, we iind 
the most urgent reasons why we should apply oui- rcsouices to the con- 
sti-ueuon of i-oads and canals. In many res[)ects no country, of equal 
poptdation and wealth, possesses equal materials for power with oiu's. 
The people, in musculai- vigor, in hardy and enterprising habits, and in a 
lofty and gallant courage, are surpassed by none, in one respect, aiul, in 
my opinion, in one onl; , we ;u-e materially weak. We occupy .i surface 
prodigiously great in propoi'tion to oiu" numbers. The common sax iigth 
is brouglit, with dithculty, to bear upon the point that may be menaced by 
Jin enemy." "Ciood roads and canals, judiciously laid out, ai'e t!ie proper 
remedy, la tiie recent war, how much did we suffer for the want uf them'. 
Besides tlie tardiness and consequent inefficiency of oui* military move 
ments, to what increased expense was the counti-y put, for the ai-ticle of 
transportation alone^ In the event of another war the saving, in this- paiti- 
cular, would go far towards indemnifying us for tVe expenses of consti'uct- 
ing tne means of transpoi-ttition." 

After explaining the importance of roads and canals in the fis- 
cal operations of the government, and in restoring the ccjuili- 
brium of the currency, disturbed by disbursing the revenue at the 
seat of war, he proceeds: 

** But on this subject of national power, what can be more important than 
a perfect unity, in every part, of feelings and iuterests? And what can 
tend more powerfully to produce it, than overcoming the eli'ects of dis- 
tance? No people, enjoying freedom, ever occupied any tiling like so 
great an extent of counti-y as tliis Republic. One hundred years ago, the 
most profound piiilosophers did not believe it even possible. TIk-v did not 
suppose ''i;at a pure Republic could exist on so great a scale as even the 
island of Great Britain. What was then considered chimerical, we now 
have the felicity to enjoy; and wiiat is most remarkable, such is the happy 
moidd of om- government, so well are the state and gciu-ral powers blend- 
ed, that much of our political happiness draws its oi-igin from the extent of 
our Republic. It lias exempted us from most of the causes which distract- 
ed the small Republics of antiquity: let it not, however, be forgotten; let 
it forever be kept in mind, that it exposes us to the greatest of all calami- 
ties, next to the loss of liberty, and even to that in its consetpiences, — (Us- 
uidon. \\c ai-e great, and rapidly, I was about to say fearfully, grovvmg. 
This is our piicUt and our danger; our weakness and our strength, f.ittle 
(said he) does he deserve to be entrusted with tiie destinies of this people, 
who does not niise iiis mind to these tniths. We are under the mosv im- 
perious obligations to counteract evei-)' tendency to disunion. The strong- 
est of all cements is, undoubtedly, the wisdom, justice, and above all, the 
moderation of this house: yet the great subject, on w hicli we are now de- 
liberating-, in this respect deserves the most serious consideration. What- 
ever impedes the intercourse of the extremes with tins, the centre of the 
Republic, weakens the Union. The ni(n-e enlarged tin; sjihere of commer- 
cial circulation; the more extended that of social intercourse; the more 
strongly are we bound together; the more insepaial5le our destinies. 
Those who understand the lunn:in heart, know how jiowerfully distance 
tends to break tlie sympathies of our nature. Nothing, not even dissimi- 
larity of language, tends more to estrange man from man. Let us dien 
(said he) bind the Republic togctlier, wiih a perivct s}stem of roads and 
canals. Let us conquer spi'.ce." — " Blessed with a fonn of govern.nent, at 
once combining liberty and strength, wc may reasonubly raise our eyes te 



18 

a most splendid futiu'e, if we only act in a manner worthy of our advantag:eff. 
If, however, ncg-lectintj them, we permit a low, sordid, selfish, sectional 
spirit to take possession of this house, this happy scene will vanish. We 
shall divide, and, as consequences, will follow misery and despotism." 

In the spirit of these enlightened and patriotic views, Mr. Cal- 
houn, since he has been Secretary of War, presented to the 
House of Representatives, in obedience to a resolution of that 
body, a luminous Report on the same subject. The resolution 
of the House equally extended to Mr. Crawford, as Secretary of 
the Treasury. He has never yet complied with the call, tiunigh 
four years have elapsed. The question has been repeatedly ask- 
ed, why has Mr. Crawford contumaciously stood mute, in defi- 
ance of the authority of Congress? Neither he nor his friends 
have condescended to answer it. I, then, will do them that 
piece of justice which modesty, no doubt, forbids them to do 
themselves. Knowing that the Virginia (or rather the Richmond) 
politicians were opposed to Internal Improvements, made by the 
national government, and that the rest of the Union entertained 
opposite views on the subject, Mr. Crawford hoped that, by hold- 
ing himself MrtcomHr«7to/, he might please all parties. Indeed, 
he is supported, in Virginia, distinctly upon the ground of his 
opposition to Internal Improvements, of which I suppose he has 
given a secret pledge. 

As Secretary of the Department of War, of which he took charge 
in December 1817, the services of Mr.Calhounhave not been less 
important, though much less striking to the general public, than 
those he rendered in Congress. Mr. Crawford, his predecessor, 
had left the Department in the utmost confusion; Iiaving made no 
single eftbrt to correct the abuses, the extravagance and the 
■waste, wiiich had crept into the system during the war. By a 
new organization, grand in its results, but, like all the improve- 
ments of genius, simple in its principles and machinery, every 
abuse has been corrected, and the utmost economy substituted in 
the place of wasteful extravagance. All the subordinate agents 
of the disbuising departments are responsible for all the public 
money, or public property, which passes through their hands, to 
an adminhtrative head at the seat of government, who sanctions 
their accounts only for expenses actually and properlij made; 
whereas, before the new organization, these accounts were sub- 
mitted directly to the Auditors, who sanctioned and passed them, 
of course, on the production of vouchers for the actual expendi- 
ture, without any inquiry into its propricfy. 

One of the, most important branches of the system, which I 
have thus generally characterized, is the commissariat; by means 
of which, the army is supplied with piovisions by commissaries, 
subject to military respimsibility, and under the control of a head 
at the seat of government. By this improvement the manifold 
impositions, formerly practised by contractors, have been eft'ectu- 
ally avoided; the army is uniformly supplied with good rations; 
military operations are no longer liable to be defeated, by (he de- 
fault of persons not subject to military rules; and the expense of 
the supjdies has been reduced to a degree that will hardly be 
credited. This great improvement, which Mr. Calhoun first 
proposed in Congress during the late war, and finally and eftcctu- 



19 

ally rocoiniuondcd in an able Report as Secretary of War, uas 
opposed by Mr. Crawforil, .Secretary of the Treasury, who volun- 
teered and obtruded his out-door exertions, to save the nation 
from the "splendid and visionary projects'- of "younp; Mr. Cal- 
houn." 'I'he result of this neu orj^ani/.ation of the administra- 
tive branches of the staff, part of which Mr. Crawford thus oppo- 
sed, and part of which his Radical friends in Congress atleniptcd 
to destroy, has been an aggregate annual saving, in tlie military 
expenditure, (with an increased efiiciency of the army,) of amucli 
larger sum than has been saved by all the (juackery of Radical 
amputation for the last five years. By ofiicial documents, sub- 
mitted to Congress, it is demonstrated, that the reduction of the 
</;2nHfl/ expenditure for the support of the army proper, effected by 
Mr. Calhoun's superior organi/.ation and superior adminisdation, 
and independent of (lie redt'etio)i of t/ie numbers of the army, a- 
mounts in the aggregate to the sum of one million three hundred 
and forty-nine tliousand two hundred and eigliteen dollars. Or, 
to express the same result in a different form, tlie annual cost of 
each individual (officers and soldiers being reduced to a common 
average) has been reduced from four hundred and fifty-one dol- 
lars fifty-seven cents, to two hundred and eighty-seven dollars 
and two cents. 

Such is the economy of the man whom the Radicals, waging 
war against truth itself, have charged with extravagance; and 
such is the contrast between enlightened and practical views, 
carried into effect with systematic and laborious exertions, and 
perpetual clamors about retrenchment, either ending in words, 
or accompanied by unskilful attempts at reform, tending to pro- 
duce disorganization. 

The same principle of organization, Avhich exists in the dis- 
bursing departments, has been extended to ever}- branch of (he 
general staff of the army. By means of the judicious division of 
labor, and a connected system of responsibility, centering in the 
Secretary of War, the utmost efiiciency has been given to the 
army in its operations. It is admitted, by the most intelligent (if 
not all) of the oflicers of the army, that the organization of the 
staff is superior to that of any army in the world; essentially dif- 
fering from the French, and decidedly better adapted to the geo- 
graphical and political character of our country. 

In the Military Academy at West Point, Mr. CaJIionn has introduced 
such sti-iking- improvements that, from being- nnpopuiar, it has be- 
come the admiration of every visitor, the t;\neral favorite of the nation, 
and, by general consent, inferior to no similar institution in Kurope. Such 
is its inflexible disciphne, and such the success with which the principle 
of honor is made siil)servient to that discipline, that a young- man cannot 
S^raduate witiiout first rate acquirements and exemplar t/ movat Uabitn. 'I'he 
ciiaiige already produced in tiie character of tlie army, by this and other 
co-operating- and dependent causes, is striking-, and nmst increase. Drunk- 
enness and gambling- ai-e now unknown in theanny. No c/ass of citizens 
is more moral in its luabits than the officers. 

But we cannot realize the full benefits of Mr. Calhoun's Labors in the 
War Department, until we consider the effect of his improvements in the 
event of war. Sup|)0se, for e.\ami)le, the projects of the Holy Alliance 
should render it necessary that we should defend our domestic alt;irs, the 
tombs of our fathers, and our general hberty, against the mjTmidons of 
despotism, what would be the mihtary capacity of the country, dcri^ ed 



^0 

fi'om llie pe:ice esiabll»lujicnt.- Owing to Uic pi .-.-.v^iiL organization, con- 
nected with the West-Point Academ)', we could liave, in six months, a 
regoilur arnw of thu'ty thousai^d men in tiie field, peifoctly org.iai/.Ld in all 
its branches, and commanded by officers at least equal to those of any 
peace establishment in Eui-ope. Thus, by the expejise of six thousand 
men, so organized and officered as to be capable of u prompt enlargement, 
we have the mihtary capacity, the defensive power of thirt3\ But tliis is 
not all. Our extensive coast has been survcjed by skilful and scientific 
engineers; a system of fortifications, \visel3' projected, is rapidly progi-ess- 
ing; and a minute knowledge of the topography of our whole line 01 ex- 
posed frontier, will enable the head of the department, by a glance at the 
maps in the office or' the topographical engineer, to determine, as to each 
point of attack, how vulnei-abie and how defensible it may be. With a 
peace establishment but very httle more expensive than that wiiich.existed 
])revious to tlie late war, we are half a century advanced inmihtai-y power. 
These are the results of wisdom and genius, prohting by the lessons of ex- 
perience. 

From this brief and imperfect summary of ^Ir. Calhoun's political ser- 
vices, 1 taink every one will admit, that he has fully reahzed the prediction 
«f Mr. UllchiC, made twelve years ago, that " he is one of those master spit-its 
;vho stamp their names upon the age in -which they live." \\ here now is \V il- 
liam II. Crav. ford? Dvv indled into a pigni)- by the side of a giant. Wliilc 
in Ail". Calhouit we have seen the undeviating- Republican, sust;Lining the 
cause of his party with umivalled ability " through evil as well as through 
good I'eport," and coming out of every conflict "without a blot upon liis 
escutcheon," we behold .Mr. Crawford literally " floating upon the siuface 
of the times," a soil of soldier of fortune in politics, prepared to fight under 
any standard which promised success to his ambitious aspirings. While Mr. 
Calhoun's pohtical course is covered vv'ith monuments of wisdom, and firm- 
ness, and patriotism, we see, in Mr. Crawford's, a ban-en waste, disfigui'cd b}' 
a few miserable wrecks of inchoate conceptions and visionary projects. 
While Mr. Calhoun, in every department of our government, has exhibited 
unequivocal evidence of talents of the first order, Mr. Crawford has been 
obliged to draw upon the ingenuity of his friends to prove, and the faith of the 
public to believe, that "he therefore should be counted v/ise for doing no- 
thing-." Wliile Mr. Calhoun, in the War Department, has saved, annually, mil- 
lions of the pubhc money, and displayed talents for administration not sur- 
passed by any American statesman, Lving or dead, Mr. Crawford has distin- 
guished his administration of the Treasiuy Department by misjudging views 
und disreputable blunders, and by losing nearly a million of the public mo- 
ney, according to his oiun shewing, by making deposits in insolvent banks 
contrary to laiv. Does history fiu-nish a .stronger contnist between twu 
men wno have reached the same point of political elevation, in a govern- 
ment where talents, principles and services :ire the only legitimate pass- 
ports to promotion? • 

Intelhgent and patriotic citizens of North-Carolina! cm you hesitate in 
your choice? If Virginia, having honestly " indulged tlie wish that Mr. 
Calhoun were a Virginian," now rejects hin\ because he is not, and siip- 
ports a native, whose place of nativity, disguise it as she may, is his on- 
ly recommendation, will you not, prefen-ing iier noble sentiments in 1811, 
to the selfish practice of her ruling politicians in 182 >, " participate as 
Americans and friends of yom- country, in the lienors of South-Caiolina?" 

Let Mr. Crawford's pai-tizans no longer have it in their power to say, that 
having "secured" Virginia, (such is their phraseolog-},) North-Carohna fol- 
lows as a matter of course. Let the two C:u-olinas, connected by common 
interests and common sympathies, as well as by a common name, unite in the 
zealous support of John C. Calhoun, whose spotless purity of chai-acter, 
enlightened views as a statesman, and past devotion to the honor and the 
interests of the Republic, are his indefeasible titles to public confidence, 
and the ample guai'anties of his futiu-e usefulness. 

Xov. 1823. CAROLINA. 



Bell 4' Lawrence, Printers, Raleigh. 



